Black Friday Sales Surge in Switzerland, But Spending Spreads Throughout the Week

Shifting Spending Patterns

While sales on Black Friday (29 November) itself were 2.1 times higher than on the Friday in the previous week, they were 9 percent lower than on Black Friday in 2023. “The data suggest that shoppers are increasingly taking advantage of deals and discounts throughout the whole week rather than focusing solely on Black Friday itself”, said Prof. Winfried Koeniger, who analysed the data together with Prof. Matthias Fengler and the Monitoring-Consumption Team. The total turnover for Black Friday week in 2024 was 5.2 percent higher than the same period in 2023.

E-commerce vs. In-Store

Although e-commerce remains popular, payment data indicates a resurgence in in-person shopping. The share of e-commerce sales in the "Retail: Other Goods" category reached 24 percent on Black Friday 2024, up from 15 percent the previous week. However, this is a drop of 3 percentage points from Black Friday 2023, suggesting that many consumers still value the shopping experience of physical stores. This trend may be attributed to the enduring appeal of city centres and shopping malls, despite the growth of online shopping.

For more information go to: monitoringconsumption.com/blog

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